Fat...tasty tasty fat....

Mmmary212
Mmmary212 Posts: 410 Member
edited October 1 in Food and Nutrition
When frying up hamburger patties or bacon and the nutrition label says X amount of fat per serving, is this taking into consideration the fat of the meat pre-cooked...or after? Because a lot of fat is expelled from these meats when cooked and I just need to be sure that when I'm logging my food. To get the exact amount of fat I want, do I log the drippings back in separately or are the drippings already included in the nutrition label?

Replies

  • camille97
    camille97 Posts: 91
    Okay, there is no need to be so specific!

    Just log whatever the nutrition label says.
  • ejmcam
    ejmcam Posts: 533 Member
    I agree with logging what the nutrition label says. You will go nuts and then how do you know exactky how much fat leaked out. Just try to buy the leanest cuts possible, then there wont be to much fat anyway.
  • ajbeans
    ajbeans Posts: 2,857 Member
    Yeah, I've wondered about that myself. I just go with the information I have available, and I figure if anything I might be just saving myself a few calories. Don't worry about it. It's not going to be a big enough difference in your overall day to really stress over it.
  • monkeydharma
    monkeydharma Posts: 599 Member
    As you look through the MFP database, it should tell you if it's raw or cooked. Bacon is usually listed as cooked unless it states raw, ground beef is usually listed as raw unless it states cooked.

    Unlike the previous poster, it pays to check, since fat has so many calories. Most unprocessed meats do not have 'nutrition labels' and have to be looked up here. Processed meats like bacon and ham usually have labels.
  • AdAstra47
    AdAstra47 Posts: 823 Member
    Some foods have the option to log different kinds of cooking. For example, if I'm putting it as an ingredient in a casserole, I can log my ground beef with the raw nutrition info. If I'm pan-frying it *in* the grease, I can log it as "cooked, fried" and the database takes that into account. Or if I put a burger on my grill so a lot of the grease drips off, I can log it as "grilled" and it has fewer fat calories.

    But with that said, keep in mind that *all* of the data on here is just best-guess estimates, anyway. If the grilled chicken you eat is really closer to 3.5 ounces than 3 ounces, or if your metabolism is more or less efficient than normal at burning certain types of calories, or even if you live at an unusually high or low altitude, these numbers won't be *exactly* accurate anyway. This site is to keep you aware of what you eat and give you guidelines, but I wouldn't obsess about the exactness of the numbers too much. There are too many variables involved and you can't consider everything. Just do the best you can.

    Good luck!
  • Mmmary212
    Mmmary212 Posts: 410 Member
    I pick the non-lean meats for the extra fat drippings. I guess for me, it does matter because a tablespoon here and there is around 15 grams of fat and that adds up and i'm trying to reach a certain amount of fat amount. So I guess I just needed to verify if I cook a hamburger patty and it expells 1 tbsp of fat drippings, to get the 28 grams of fat, do I have to re-add the fat...
  • Nyodra
    Nyodra Posts: 40
    Hey Mary :)

    I always do pre-cooked weight, they take into account the extra fat then. If you are struggling to reach a certin fat/protein ratio in your keto I'd suggest trying to add in some sort of oil into everything you cook, I hear that coconut oil tastes great in coffee :)
    I'd also suggest not trying to rely on your cooked meat for the main source of your fat. Cheeses, oil and nuts should be your base, and whatever is left should be from the meat. Its easier to reach goals that way, and I know, I struggle with it myself. If you like ranch or spinach dip, those two have LOTS of fat. Yum yum.
  • Mmmary212
    Mmmary212 Posts: 410 Member
    Oh I have no problem reaching my goals LOL I just wanted to make sure it was logging accurately. I'm doing strictly meat right now, no dairy, no cheeses, no nuts....just sweet potatoes as a non-meat thing.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
    Meat nutrition and weight is always RAW. There is no way to accurately track how much fat is lost in the cooking process, as it's usually a combination of fat and water that is lost, some of the fat evaporates with the water, etc. Plus depending on how it's cooked, different amounts can be lost, and no two meats will ever cook out the same, even if it's the same cut.

    Keep in mind also, that nutrition information is an estimated average anyway, and whatever you cooked may have actually started with a little more or less fat than stated. It's impossible to be 100% accurate.
  • portexploit
    portexploit Posts: 378 Member
    Make sure you're drinking plenty of water on a low carb diet. Protein requires more water to digest, it will dehydrate you can give you kidney issues. So make sure you're drinking plenty of water.

    Red meats have been linked to colon cancer, so becareful with that. I just got off a low carb diet a few weeks ago. Make sure most of your protein sources are chicken and fish

    To answer your question, I am assuming you're making these burgers in a george forman style grill. If you're adding oil in a pan and cooking, you have to count the oil of course. plus the fat in the pan.

    Lets say you cook these burgers, and measure how much fat is left in the pan, is 1 ml of beef fat the same as 1ml of chicken fat or any other type of meat. You also goto to take in to consideration how much of the fat was absorbed by the pan, even on the plate you eat it on... The plate does get a bit greasy, and the pan is of coruse, i bet even your fingers. You want to measure all that? Be my guest.

    Don't be trying to cheat yourself, "the package says 150 calories for a pattie. When I cook it, it will lose some fat, so it might be 100 calories per pattie. So this means I can eat more food." You'll lose more weight and have a better chance of success logging how many claories the package says
  • Nyodra
    Nyodra Posts: 40
    Why are you avoiding things that are high in fiber and low in carbs? Like green leaf veggies, such as spinach, leaf lettuce, broc, cauli? Not worried about micro-nutrients? They keep you stronger and more energized. Though sweet potatoes are fabulous, I'd encourage some variety, to make sure you aren't lacking in other things. I know my B and iron are lower since starting keto, and I eat vegetables and nuts often. Just started taking a multivitamin to counter act it. Check into it :) Shouldn't hurt in short terms if you are doing what you are doing for a specific result, but I'd watch it for the long run.
  • ahavoc
    ahavoc Posts: 464 Member
    search for a new food and look for "Bacon cooked". That's what I did with my burger that I just ate and boy, it was delicious! I did "Ground Beef cooked" and made sure I weighed my burger after cooking it.
  • Mmmary212
    Mmmary212 Posts: 410 Member
    Why are you avoiding things that are high in fiber and low in carbs? Like green leaf veggies, such as spinach, leaf lettuce, broc, cauli? Not worried about micro-nutrients? They keep you stronger and more energized. Though sweet potatoes are fabulous, I'd encourage some variety, to make sure you aren't lacking in other things. I know my B and iron are lower since starting keto, and I eat vegetables and nuts often. Just started taking a multivitamin to counter act it. Check into it :) Shouldn't hurt in short terms if you are doing what you are doing for a specific result, but I'd watch it for the long run.

    I have no desire to eat vegetables (right now)...and nuts I eat once in awhile...i'd rather eat something more. I'm not saying I never do eat vegetables, but on a daily basis....no thanks. Rather have a slab of beef.

    I've never felt better eating this way.
  • AdAstra47
    AdAstra47 Posts: 823 Member
    Make sure you're drinking plenty of water on a low carb diet. Protein requires more water to digest, it will dehydrate you can give you kidney issues. So make sure you're drinking plenty of water.

    ...Make sure most of your protein sources are chicken and fish

    It's always a good idea to make sure you keep your body properly hydrated and drink plenty of water, that's good advice. But I have to disagree with the rest. The idea that a high-protein diet causes kidney or liver damage is a myth. It is only hard on your organs if you have some sort of damage to start with. Kind of like saying that strenuous exercise causes heart failure: well, technically it can, but only if the heart was already weak.

    I know that conventional wisdom says lean meats are better, but that is increasingly being challenged. My doctor tells me to get 350g protein a day, and fewer than 30g carbs, and he leaves it entirely up to me how I make that work. I asked him about "bad" foods, and he said the idea that fat is bad for you has never really been scientifically proven. Too much cholesterol in your bloodstream is bad, yes, but cholesterol in your blood is not caused by eating too much cholesterol; if you eat a lot of chocolate, you don't start seeing chocolate in your blood, do you? Everything is broken down & digested & processed inside your body, and the important thing is the efficiency of that process. My doctor told me that my body works most efficiently if I eat plenty of protein, and if all that protein is beef & red meat, then that's just fine.

    And my own anecdotal evidence supports this. Since starting this four months ago, I've really increased my fat & red meat intake, and my cholesterol has gone from 201 to 180 with no meds.

    You might check out these documentaries:
    "Fat Head," available on Netflix and Hulu,
    "My Big Fat Diet," by the Canadian Broadcasting Company,
    http://www.diabetesnewsstand.com/vissue/vernon/titlepage.html

    There are also lots of Paleo / Primal diet advocates on here. If you haven't already, you can search the forums for support groups. Good luck to you!
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